Whārangi 1. History and early developments

First hens in New Zealand

In 1773, on his second voyage to New Zealand, Captain
James Cook gave hens to Māori in both the North and South
islands. Missionaries in the Bay of Islands were the first
recorded poultry farmers in 1814. Many early settlers had a
few hens in the backyard to supply eggs. Chicken meat was a
luxury, eaten perhaps only once or twice a year – often a
non-laying hen or old rooster. Domestic poultry also included
ducks, geese and turkeys, but chickens were by far the most
popular and numerous.

In 1896 the New Zealand government appointed its first
poultry expert. Soon after, several state poultry stations
were set up to evaluate approved strains of poultry and farm
and breed them. The emphasis at this time was mostly on egg
production, although heavy breeds were recognised as being
useful for both eggs and meat.

Early 20th century

At the beginning of the 20th century, chickens – often
called chooks – were kept in coops and runs in the backyards
of about half of New Zealand households. Poultry farmers used
similar set-ups, or kept hens in fields in ‘mobile arks’,
which could be moved when the ground became muddy. Some
farmers kept hens indoors in a barn, with a litter floor and
nest boxes for egg-laying. The intensive system, where birds
are kept indoors throughout their productive life, was first
used in 1915 and soon became the most widespread.

Improved laying strains

Improved laying strains were imported to the state poultry
stations, and their eggs or chicks were sold to the public.
These were such breeds as the Campine, White and Brown
Leghorn, Minorca, Wyandotte and Orpington. White Leghorns and
Orpingtons were the most popular.

Before the mid-20th century, poultry meat was very much a
by-product of the egg industry and involved mainly laying
birds that had finished their productive life. This changed
during the Second World War, when American hospitals and
convalescent homes in the Pacific requested table poultry
year round. Producers and retailers were pressured to improve
standards, and in 1944 a Poultry Flock Improvement Plan was
introduced by the New Zealand Poultry Board and administered
by the Department of Agriculture.

After the mid-20th century specialised breeds have been
developed for either meat or egg production.

An important job

Day-old chicks are sexed so that future egg-layers can
be segregated. The Department of Agriculture held the first
chick-sexing examinations in 1935, and in 1943 chick sexing
was considered so important that those carrying out the
work were prevented from enlisting for military
service.

Cabinet incubators

The scale of production significantly increased after the
introduction in the early 1930s of cabinet incubators, which
allowed large numbers of eggs to hatch at the same time. This
enabled poultry farming to evolve into large-scale commercial
operations.

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Me pēnei te tohu i te whārangi:

Vanessa Wintle and Stacey Lepper, 'Poultry industry - History and early developments', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/mi/poultry-industry/page-1 (accessed 7 June 2020)